US Department of State Daily Briefing #51:
Thursday, 3/28/91
Boucher
Source: State Department Deputy Spokesman Richard
Boucher
Description: 12:35 PM, Washington, DC
Date: Mar 28, 19913/28/91
Category: Briefings
Region: MidEast/North Africa, East Asia,
Subsaharan Africa, Eurasia
Country: USSR (former), South Africa, Japan, Albania,
Estonia, Iraq, Kuwait
Subject: Mideast Peace Process, Arms Control, Terrorism,
United Nations, State Department, Human Rights,
Democratization, Regional/Civil Unrest
(ON THE RECORD UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED)
MR. BOUCHER: Carol Giacomo wants a few minutes.
MS. GIACOMO (Reuters): Before the briefing starts, my
colleagues have asked me to say something on behalf of Adam Shub
who is leaving the Press Office after a couple of years stint to
go to Caracas, Venezuela. Adam has done a very professional
job, and he's been very helpful to many of us day after day
after day, and we wish him well.
PRESS: Hear, hear. (Applause)
MR. BOUCHER: Very nice.
MR. GEORGE GEDDA (AP): When asked my opinion, I took
the question. (Laughter)
MR. BOUCHER: You'll get back to us on that, George?
MR. GEDDA: Yes.
MR. NORM KEMPSTER (L.A. Times): The vote was 12 to 11.
MR. BOUCHER: O.K. Good afternoon, ladies and
gentlemen. I thought I'd maybe start out by updating you on the
unrest in Iraq and the events that are unfolding there, and then
we can move on to the other questions that I'm sure you have in
mind.
[Iraq: Civil Unrest Update]
In the north this morning, the government began a major
assault against the City of Kirkuk. Government forces were
employing tanks, heavy artillery, helicopter gunships and
probably multiple rocket launchers. Buildings and other
facilities inside Kirkuk had already suffered significant damage
during the first hours of the assault.
Elsewhere in northern Iraq, clashes continued between
government forces and dissident elements east and southeast of
Mosul. The government has recently sent additional
reinforcements to Mosul. We cannot confirm government claims
that its forces have retaken the town of Dohuk northeast of
Mosul.
In the south, we can confirm at this point only one
major clash early this morning took place in the lower Euphrates
Valley in which government forces used artillery against the
dissidents.
That's the basic situation. So now I'd be glad to take
your questions.
[USSR: Major Fire at US Embassy Moscow]
Q If there are no questions on that, could we talk
about the fire at the Embassy in Moscow?
MR. BOUCHER: Sure. Let me start out by sort of giving
you the basic rundown. At approximately 10:15 a.m., Moscow
time, a major fire broke out in the central section at the U.S.
Embassy office building in Moscow. The entire building was
promptly evacuated. One Marine Guard, one construction employee
and one Soviet firefighter have been treated for smoke
inhalation. We have no other reports of injuries. Local
firefighters were called to the scene.
The fire has been put out, although some areas are
still smoldering. A very preliminary damage assessment has been
conducted. It appears that the fire began in an elevator shaft
and travelled upward to the attic. The roof over the central
section of the building is gone.
Actual fire damage is concentrated in the attic and in
areas near the elevator shaft on lower floors. Water and smoke
damage is extensive throughout the central section. The two
side wings of the building which contain housing and offices
were mostly spared, and a more comprehensive damage assessment
is underway.
Soviet firefighters were called right away, and they
were given authorization to enter without delay upon their
arrival. Marine Guards had to escort firefighters to some areas
in order to ensure that they could find their way and in order
to open locked doors. Escorts were arranged without significant
delay.
Several hundred people work in the Embassy, and it
would have been unconscionable in our view to risk their lives
by failing to call for assistance. The Embassy, of course, does
not have its own capability to fight major fires.
At this point, the Embassy is closed. None of its
public phone lines are operating, and it may take a few days to
provide even an estimate of when normal services to the public,
including visa issuances, might resume. We do expect that
arrangements will be made very soon to provide emergency
services to American citizens.
And, finally, the new Embassy Compound, which is near
the damaged Chancery, as you know, contains housing and some
support facilities. There is also a U.S. commercial office in a
separate building near the damaged Chancery and limited
operations are now being conducted from those areas.
Q Does the central portion of the building which was
damaged contain the Ambassador's office and other sensitive
areas?
MR. BOUCHER: I believe that all those main offices are
in that central portion of the building. Yes.
Q Richard, what does this do to the Embassy's
ability to have secure communications with Washington?
MR. BOUCHER: It's not something that I can go into
great detail on. But, I mean, first of all, the Chancery has
been evacuated. We don't think it's safe for people to go into
even the undamaged areas for normal work at this point. We have
phone contact at present with our Embassy, but our normal
communications have been interrupted.
Q Richard, one of the facilities that was in that
central section of the building was the secure conference room.
Does this affect the ability of the Embassy personnel to hold
secure meetings?
MR. BOUCHER: John, there's always a limit on how much
I can talk about specific security capabilities that we have and
our ability to hold meetings. On the general question of
security, I'd have to say that we have no indication at this
time of any significant activities that would have compromised
security during the course of the fire, but we really need to
have a damage assessment before we can offer you firm judgment.
Q Has foul play been ruled out?
MR. BOUCHER: I'm not aware of any suspicions. I think
my characterization about the fire is about as far as I can go
in telling you about the cause.
Q When you talked about safety, they're not allowed
to go back because it's unsafe because of wide structural
damage, water, what?
MR. BOUCHER: As I said, in addition to the fire damage
to the upper part of the building, there's extensive water and
smoke damage in other parts of the building, and so we're doing
a survey to see if there is in fact structural damage to the
building that would make it totally unsafe.
Q Has this changed your assessment on what you're
going to do about the new Embassy? Has it sort of encouraged
you to perhaps speed up that process?
MR. BOUCHER: Well, Carol, I think you know that our
assessment has always been that we couldn't maintain operations
in this old building over the long term. We've been trying for
two years to get funding for new building projects. I talked a
few weeks ago about the fact that, having been unable to get
funding for the tear-down and rebuild option, which was still
our preference, that we were floating -- we were talking about
the idea of something that's called "top hat," taking off part
of the top of the building, a couple floors, and building onto
that.
You know, that project remains a key focus for us. It
remains something that we definitely want to do. We have spent
some money in the old building. We had an extensive project to
rehabilitate the Chancery -- including a sprinkler system and
fire safety improvements. This project was underway, and the
sprinkler system in fact worked in the areas where it had been
installed, and we think it saved us from having even more
extensive damage. But efforts like this in the old building are
no substitute for getting underway with the very important
project that we've been pushing for some time, and we hope to be
able to do that.
Q Richard, is the new tower -- regardless of whether
it could be considered suitable for secure type operations, is
it even suitable as a temporary place in which you could conduct
some non-secure work, or is it just -- I don't know what the
stage is that it was at when it was stopped.
MR. BOUCHER: Many of you have been to Moscow and have
probably seen these things and can explain them better than I
can, so I will use the words they gave me. But there is a
distinction between the New Embassy Compound and the New Office
Building. The compound has 134 apartments and support and
recreational facilities that have been in use for a number of
years. Temporary operations are being conducted out of that
section that is called the "Embassy Compound."
The New Office Building itself is nowhere near
completion, and it's just not suitable for any kind of temporary
operations.
Q Richard, do you have an assessment whether the
structural damage to this building now makes it impossible to
put a "top hat" on top of it?
MR. BOUCHER: No. That's not what we're dealing with.
Q Oh, that's the new Embassy.
MR. BOUCHER: The fire was in the old Chancery. The
"top hat" option is something to do with the New Office
Building.
Q Excuse me. Another question on that: There have
been many warnings that this building is unsafe, and in fact
just as recently as last week Sherman Funk testified in
Congress, saying that the building was unsafe. Do you feel that
Congress has failed to move with enough dispatch to address
these problems in the past and --
MR. BOUCHER: We're certainly interested in working
with the Congress to address these problems. I will point out,
as I did before, that we have been looking for funding for this
project for two years, and we haven't succeeded in getting it.
Q Slow ball right over the plate. (Laughter)
Q Getting back to Kirkuk for a moment, can you
characterize the size of the assault against the Kurds in the
area, and also, if you could, characterize with some precision
the damage done to the city itself?
MR. BOUCHER: I can't give you in any more detail than
I did. I said it's a major assault, and that there's already
been significant damage, and I think I told you about the kinds
of heavy weaponry that government forces are employing.
Q Everything absent of fixed-wing aircraft. Is that
--
MR. BOUCHER: I really don't know what "everything" is.
I've given you an inclusive list of the items that we know
they're using.
Q Is the U.S. policy -- could you reiterate the U.S.
policy toward the Kurdish resistance for us, please?
MR. BOUCHER: Today, as we have done in all the
previous days past, and as the President did again yesterday, I
believe?
Q Yes, please.
MR. BOUCHER: Just for the fun of it?
Q If it wouldn't impose on --
MR. BOUCHER: I don't have the precise words down here.
As you know, we have said that we stand for the territorial
integrity of Iraq. We don't believe in the dismemberment of
Iraq. We believe that the Iraqi people should be allowed to
choose their own leadership.
Q Can I take you back to Moscow for a minute?
MR. BOUCHER: Sure.
[USSR: Ban on Rallies]
Q The other great event going on there besides the
fire. Can you give us a sense of what has happened there in
terms of this rally and the enforcement of the ban on rallies,
and whether the United States has any reaction to the events of
today?
MR. BOUCHER: O.K. As far as what's going on, I'm
going to give you what I think is a shortened version of this,
because I think we've all been watching it on television all
morning, and you don't need the excruciating detail.
But basically the Russian Congress of the People's
Deputy has voted to rescind the Central Government's ban on
demonstrations and to return control of the Moscow police to
city authorities. The Central Government has refused to
recognize this decision and has vowed to prevent all
demonstrations in central Moscow.
Soviet military and Interior Ministry troops presented
a large show of force in central Moscow in an effort to prevent
demonstrators from reaching the area near the Kremlin.
Witnesses have reported seeing water cannon and large trucks
blocking streets leading to the city center, but there have so
far been no reports of tanks or armored personnel carriers on
city streets.
I would point out that we are following this closely,
not only from here but that our Embassy, despite the fire, is
out and about and is following events as closely as possible and
reporting back to us by telephone.
Q Do we have any reaction to these events?
[USSR: US Position on the Right to Demonstrate]
MR. BOUCHER: Margaret, I think, yesterday expressed
our basic feelings about peaceful demonstrations and the need to
recognize the right of people to demonstrate freely. Secretary
Baker expressed our concern directly to the Soviet Charge in
Washington yesterday. Ambassador Matlock has raised our concern
as well yesterday and today with senior levels of the Soviet
government.
We see peaceful protest as a legitimate means of
expressing one's political views. Expansion of the rights of
expression and assembly have been a hallmark of the Soviet
government's commitment to reform. We have seen no indications
that suggest that demonstrations planned for today would have
been any less peaceful or orderly than previous demonstrations
in Moscow, all of which took place without incident.
We urge the Soviet government to remove all unnecessary
restrictions on the rights of free expression and assembly as
soon as possible. And the current political crisis in the
Soviet Union, we believe, cannot be resolved through
confrontation. A truly durable and legitimate solution can only
come through peaceful dialogue in an orderly, democratic,
political process.
[USSR: Coal Miner Strike]
Q Richard, do you have an assessment of the extent
and seriousness of the strikes in various key sectors of the
Soviet economy?
MR. BOUCHER: I think we're dealing principally with
the coal miner strike, which I guess we've seen is appearing to
have some effects on their iron and steel industry on the
metallurgical sectors. And, again, in this area we hope that
the Soviet government will find ways of dealing peacefully with
the workers concerned.
There are Soviet laws that were passed in 1989 and '90
which gave Soviet workers the right to strike and to form
independent unions. I would note also that the Soviet Union is
a signatory to the International Labor Organization's Convention
Number 87 of 1956. This is known as the "Freedom of Association
Convention" which guarantees the rights of workers to form
unions and to strike.
So in this case as well, we hope the Soviet government
will view free trade unions as a progressive and integral part
of the freer economic system it hopes to build.
Q And as far as where authority should lie over the
police in Moscow, does the United States have a view of that?
MR. BOUCHER: That is really a question that lies at
the very heart of the debate that they're having right now over
the functions of the Central Government versus the Republics.
It is something that we see as for the Soviet people to
determine.
[Middle East Peace Process: Ideas on Sponsorship]
Q Can we go to another subject? Is the United
States willing to sponsor with the Soviet Union a regional peace
conference in the Middle East?
MR. BOUCHER: John, there are a number of ideas out
there; there are a number of ideas in play as regards the peace
process right now. We've told you about the meetings that we're
having with various people to discuss those ideas, but you're
also aware that the Secretary, during his trip, said that he
didn't want to get into specifics until things had jelled. As
Margaret said yesterday, we're looking for a convergence of
points of view. We're looking to see what the parties are
willing to do. But I'm going to decline at this point from
discussing any specific ideas which may be out there.
Q So we should just ask every day whether anything
has jelled?
MR. BOUCHER: Or converged, I guess, is the proper
term.
Q Or converged?
MR. BOUCHER: Yes.
Q Has anything converged?
MR. BOUCHER: At this point, no, not that I'm aware of.
I don't have anything to --
Q Can we go back to Kirkuk a second? It sounds like
we are in the beginning stages of a major bloody situation in
Kirkuk. Is the United States doing anything in terms of any
contact with the Iraqi government, warning them against taking
massive retaliatory action that they appear to be getting ready
to take? Are we saying anything new about helicopters? Are we
doing anything or just kind of watching this happen?
MR. BOUCHER: We're following the situation closely,
Al. I don't think we've had any meetings with the Iraqis on
this or any changes in our policy on aircraft or helicopters, or
things like that.
Q Our policy on aircraft is one thing; our policy on
helicopters is the other.
MR. BOUCHER: (Inaudible)
Q On Kirkuk, do you have any information on control
of the oil fields in that vicinity?
MR. BOUCHER: No, I don't.
Q Richard, on Kirkuk also. Since you said that the
U.S. doesn't favor the dismemberment of Iraq, would a victory,
whatever that means, for the Kurds be considered by the U.S. as
dismemberment of Iraq?
MR. BOUCHER: I think that's a very hypothetical
question at this point on how things are going to turn out and
what the views are of the people who may win. I can't specify
one way or the other at this point.
[Iraq: Humanitarian Assistance to Civilians]
Q Is anybody talking about humanitarian aid to the
Kurds -- food?
MR. BOUCHER: The Sanctions Committee has set up a
mechanism to deal with questions like this.
The decision of March 22 that the Sanctions Committee
made at the U.N. involves a determination that humanitarian
circumstances apply with respect to the entire civilian
population in Iraq in all parts of Iraq's national territory.
The Committee also decided to supply food to the entire civilian
population of Iraq on condition that the sending state notify
the Committee of an impending shipment.
The Sanctions Committee also insisted that the
Secretary General set up a monitoring system to ensure that
humanitarian relief shipments reach all Iraqi civilian groups in
need. We have urged the Secretary General to move rapidly on
this.
Q How are those shipments taking place, Richard?
Under the auspices of the ICRC or the U.N.? Exactly what's the
mechanism for getting the food and humanitarian assistance into
places like northern Iraq, which is in turmoil?
MR. BOUCHER: The mechanisms have to be set up, I
think, first, by the Secretary General to look at ways of
ensuring that the food reaches the people that need it.
The precise mechanism for each shipment would be
determined by those who are making the shipments, whether it was
the Red Cross or some government or otherwise. The action of
the Sanctions Committee, essentially, permits those shipments
with notification.
Q And are those shipments underway? There's, as you
may know, a story this morning in which the Kurds are
complaining that their biggest problem at the moment is
starvation; that they're not getting any food and they're all
starving to death up there?
MR. BOUCHER: I wasn't able to get information on any
specific shipments that might be underway. I'm told that we
don't have any information that either the Iraqi government or,
for that matter, neighboring countries are blocking shipments.
But at this point, I don't have any information on shipments
that might be undertaken.
Q Yeah, but how are they going to get there if the
Iraqi government doesn't get them there?
MR. BOUCHER: Well, as I said, there are mechanisms
that can be set up to confirm the receipt, to confirm that the
shipments are going to people who want them.
Q But there is no evidence that they have gone
there, is there?
MR. BOUCHER: No. As I said, I don't have any
information on specific shipments that might be undertaken. But
on the other hand, I don't have any information that the Iraqi
government is blocking any shipments.
Q Also, back on the question of the U.S. and USSR.
You said there are many things out there. Can you tell us if
one of them is this program? Is that being considered?
MR. BOUCHER: At this point, I'm not going to get into
any specific ideas.
Q Yesterday, Margaret said that the Secretary would
be willing to meet members of the Iraqi opposition. Has anybody
requested a meeting yet?
MR. BOUCHER: No.
Q Can you discuss the circumstances of the
Secretary's warning to the Soviet Charge here? How was that --
MR. BOUCHER: I believe he was placing a call to
Bessmertnykh who was not available, so he called the Soviet
Charge here. As I said, he relayed our concerns about the
situation in Moscow, about various reports coming out about what
might happen.
We, both in that conversation and in the conversations
in Moscow, pointed to the CSCE commitments that the Soviet
government had made and urged them to handle the events of today
in conformance with those commitments.
Q Do you have a readout of the Secretary's meeting
with the President of Estonia?
MR. BOUCHER: No, I don't. I'll have to get one for
you later.
[South Africa: Killings in Alexandra]
Q Richard, do you have any comment on the events in
Johannesburg?
MR. BOUCHER: We're told the killings were in a place
called Alexandra. The factional violence and senseless killings
continue to bring tragedy to South Africa.
We understand that the victims of this attack -- 15
dead and 18 injured -- were members of an ANC-related youth
group attending a memorial for the victim of a previous attack.
Witnesses say the police were notified of the presence of a
suspicious group of people but left after finding no one in the
immediate vicinity. The attack came after the police had left.
The police have announced that they are investigating
the incident. At this point, as far as who is responsible,
there is only speculation that it involves the possibility that
they were Inkatha sympathizers or elements of some rightist
third force.
We believe it's the responsibility of the South African
police to protect South African citizens, especially in such
circumstances and locations where violence has become endemic.
It is also the responsibility of the leaders of all groups in
South Africa to control their members and actively and
vigilantly ensure that the senseless violence stops.
Q Can I ask you about the statement attributed to
the Israeli police Minister about "shoot to kill Palestinians"
who an Israeli may perceive to be attempting to stab them or
something?
MR. BOUCHER: At this point, we really don't have any
further information. We've seen the statements that have been
made and quoted in the press.
We do understand that there was a special Israeli
Cabinet meeting which took place yesterday to discuss security
issues, but that did not reach agreement and they will reconvene
later. We continue to urge all sides to seek ways to reduce
tensions and to replace violence with dialogue and
accommodation.
Q Richard, has there been any --
Q Do you have any comment on what happened yesterday
with the army shooting a 15-year old kid who was spray-painting
some slogan on a wall?
MR. BOUCHER: No, I don't.
Q It's getting to the point where these kids aren't
armed, but standing there with a spray gun -- I mean, a spray
can -- and they got shot?
MR. BOUCHER: I think I would just reiterate our views.
The cycle of violence is something that's got to stop and that
people have to work towards reaching a peaceful dialogue.
Q What was the beginning of the cycle of this case
yesterday?
MR. BOUCHER: Many, many years ago.
Q Has there been any Israeli response to your
urgings of them not to go through with the deportation of the
four Gazans? Have you noticed any attempt to stop the judicial
process there?
MR. BOUCHER: I'm not aware of any change in that
situation out there. As you know, the United Nations Security
Council President issued a statement yesterday that was adopted
by consensus. We were part of that consensus; and the
statement, we felt, was in conformity with U.S. views.
Q Do you have anything on the Secretary General of
the Japanese Democratic Party meeting?
MR. BOUCHER: No. That's something else -- a meeting
this morning that I'll have to get you a readout on later.
Q Richard, can we go back to Iraq for a second?
Last week, or slightly over a week ago, Pete Williams at the
Pentagon said that 3 Iraqi individuals, who were in Saudi camps,
were identified as having committed some violations of the
Geneva codes. He couldn't say whether those people actually
were the people who were alleged to have done the deeds,
whatever those were. Do you have anymore on that?
MR. BOUCHER: No, I don't. I think I'd have to leave
it for him.
Q Can you tell us whether there have been any
individuals arrested in connection with war crimes violations?
MR. BOUCHER: Again, that's something that the Pentagon
is better able to address, or are the actual ones who have
custody of these people.
Q The State Department is conducting its own
investigations -- is that right? -- of war crimes violations?
MR. BOUCHER: The investigation of war crimes
violations is normally centered in an office in the Pentagon. I
think it's the Judge Advocate General's Office of the Department
of the Army, and then others who acquire information, including
people like some of the investigators they've sent out to Kuwait
City or ourselves, through our own resources, who have also been
passing on information. So there's a process established that
was established right at the beginning for collecting any
information on this.
Q How far along is that investigation? Do you have
any idea?
MR. BOUCHER: I don't know about any specific cases.
Q There's no impending arrest of Saddam Hussein that
you know of?
MR. BOUCHER: Not that I'm aware of.
Q Richard, does the United States know yet whether
Iraq is going to accept or not the terms for a permanent
ceasefire set out in the proposed U.N. resolution?
MR. BOUCHER: I don't think we do, at this point.
Q Has Ambassador Pickering met with Ambassador
al-Anbari in the last 48 hours?
MR. BOUCHER: I don't know. I have to check on that.
I know he's had meetings during the course of these discussions
up in New York. He's had meetings with the Iraqis.
Our view remains that they have to comply, first of
all, with the existing resolution -- Resolution 686 -- as we
have discussed with our Perm Five partners, the issues of
compliance. We all agree Iraq should comply with any new
resolutions that are laid down.
Q Richard, this weekend marks the formal dissolution
of the Warsaw Pact, a somewhat momentous occasion. Does the
State Department have any comment or any reflection upon the
death of our old adversary?
MR. BOUCHER: Not today. Let me see if we want to do
something.
Q Can I ask you, what is next in the peace process?
Are there any visits, any announcements? What is next in the
Arab-Israeli conflict from this government?
MR. BOUCHER: I don't have anything particular for you
at this time. I'm sure that we'll continue our discussions with
the various parties. We've been in touch with them. Margaret's
reported, I think, extensively on conversations that the
Secretary and Dennis Ross and others have had over the course of
the week. Those kinds of consultations will continue as we look
for points of convergence.
Q Not that extensively.
MR. BOUCHER: Extensively as we're going to, Bill.
Q On the fire, what about the security of documents
in that building? Is anything being done about that? Is there
concern about it?
MR. BOUCHER: Again, we have to do a full assessment.
I said earlier that, in general, we are not aware of any
significant compromises that might have occurred during the
course of the fire and the firefighters and all those events
that took place. We'll have to do a full assessment of that.
Q Will there be 24-hour Marine Guards around the
building?
MR. BOUCHER: I believe so. Yes.
Q Do you know how much money has been spent on the
renovations? And have all the renovations been done on that
central part? In other words, have they been destroyed?
MR. BOUCHER: I don't think all the renovations were
done because there was this renovation project underway. As I
said, the sprinkler systems were in only parts of the building
but we had done enough to prevent even more extensive damage. I
don't have the dollar figures on the project. I'll have to get
that for you.
Q Richard, there's another momentous event this
weekend. That's the Albanian election.
Q (Inaudible) the Moscow Embassy. One final
question, George. Are you sending teams in to assess from here?
Wouldn't this need a certain amount of specialized knowledge of
people from here rather than just your Embassy --
MR. BOUCHER: I'm not aware of any specific teams.
But, of course, since we have building projects underway in
Moscow and renovation projects underway in Moscow, we have a
considerable amount of expertise out there already. I'm sure
that those are the people, at least, that are doing the initial
assessments. Whether we require additional expertise or not,
we'll find out as we proceed with more detailed assessments.
Q Do you have anything on the Albanian election this
weekend?
MR. BOUCHER: Not today, no. I think we've expressed
our hopes and desire that it be free and fair. We do have the
initial team of people out there looking at our Embassy.
They'll be following the events there. There were a number of
other observers that were going out, so we'll see how the events
progress.
Q In the discussions that Secretary Baker and
Ambassador Matlock had, did the Soviets respond in any way? Did
they say that they would avoid the use of force or anything
else?
MR. BOUCHER: I'm not aware of any particular detailed
response in those meetings. I think they just basically said
they understood our points.
Q Thank you.
(Press briefing concluded at 1:05 p.m.)
(###)